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On the official Age of Empires Online YouTube channel, a new video announces the addition of Celts and Persians as expansion civilizations. The video is a minute and a half long and previews what's to come later in the year.

In AOEO there are two main systems here: the RTS side and the Capital city. I'm going to start with the RTS side as that is the most familiar to fans. Even though the art style is more cartoon like compared to previous games, this is not "baby's first AOE". The challenge of micro managing villagers with multiple types of resources is still here. With that said however, people looking for AOE 4 may be disappointed as there are no new innovations to the formula.

In terms of game-play take the different sides of Age of Mythology and throw in the concept of guardians and treasures of AOE 3 and that is a rough description of the overall RTS game play in AOEO. Two details that have been removed are hero units and the myth units from AOM.

While AOEOnline will be free-to-play, Microsoft is offering a physical box for sale that includes goodies like a poster and reference cards and some in-game assets to help you get a head start on the competition. The package is $19.95 and can be pre-ordered on Amazon. Here's the full list of what's included:

Premium Greek civilization — unlock the power of Rare and Epic items, Advisors to enhance your civilization, the Player vs. Player Arena, awesome technologies, and much more!
Give your civilization an edge with the exclusive Windy´s Wild Widgets Store, where you can buy or sell special ability items.
Hotkey quick reference card.
Limited-edition poster and Advisor cards.
Instructions to download the free-to-play experience.

1 _H2O General 47 46.19485
2 Sparkle_loop Major General 43 42.51114
3 nobumanteikoku Major General 43 42.35344
4 tombo_ Major General 43 42.01018
5 suckplayer Major General 43 42.00333
6 AOE_DaRk_GhOsT Major General 42 41.56164
7 Scorpion_Shogun Major General 42 41.48126
8 shmras Major General 42 41.45510
9 blackouter Major General 42 41.29477
10 eunomia Major General 41 40.89558

The plan for Age of Empires Online is still to launch with two civilizations, the Egyptians and the Greeks. Beyond that, Taylor is saying there'll be more civilizations and extra paid content, as well as updates that expand what's available in the free portion of the game. "The updates are happening all over the place. We might tweak the graphics engine. We might tweak the pathfinding. We might tweak the keyboard bindings. Those are updates that will go out to everyone. It's not just about paying for the updates. When you're playing this game, you're being supported, paying or not."

Age of Empires Online – the next chapter in the best-selling Age of Empires PC game franchise – will be available worldwide August 16th, 2011 in retail stores and online at www.ageofempiresonline.com. With its launch, the game will feature two of the greatest ancient civilizations – the Greeks and Egyptians – and offer more than 40 hours of gameplay for free!

And that’s just where the experience starts! As players grow their empires and look for new adventures, Age of Empires Online delivers the opportunity to buy new Premium Content Packs – everything from entirely new civilizations to Booster Packs with new game modes and more. It’s the biggest Age of Empires game ever.

What’s more, Age of Empires Online adds new social interaction, customization, and MMORPG gameplay in an evolving and persistent world. Play co-operatively or competitively, craft and trade items, and level up by completing quests – all for free! Plus, Age of Empires Online still offers all the classic RTS gameplay, empowering players to build mighty empires, manage resources, earn rewards, and battle their way into rich new worlds full of lively villagers, epic warriors, and historically-themed architecture.
In Age of Empires Online, YOU RULE.

Chris Taylor, from Gas Powered Games, the gaming studio now behind Age of Empires Online, has an interview with PC Gamer about the free to play model:

PC Gamer: So is AoEO what Gas Powered are doing for the next X years?

Chris Taylor: Yeah. We have other things, smaller things but other things going on. The great bulk of the company is working on Age of Empires Online, and we will be for, hopefully, years and years to come. There’s no telling, there’s no seeing totally into the future, but that’s the plan.

The Construction Store is where you’ll buy workshop blueprints. Why bother with workshops? Workshops supply you with a nearly endless amount of goods for crafting. You will have to tend to your workshops, though. Once they produce their max number of goods, they can’t produce more until you empty them and place the goods in your inventory. Also, the Construction Store offers houses you can buy and place around your city. These are decorative only, but it’s always nice to give your city dwellers a place to call their own.

We are excited to announce the launching of our latest Community site, L.A. Noire Precinct, that covers the newly released game by Rockstar. So please take a moment to drop by and see what is going on over at the Precinct. While there be sure to check out the L.A. Noire Wiki section for all your needs. There will also be extensive guides, screenshots and editorials. Check it out!

"When you look at Age of Empires, it's an RTS game. PC is the right platform, especially when you consider the free-to-play model we're doing. We're pushing the envelope on the business model. We're pushing the envelope on what Age of Empires has done in the past. We're stepping into this MMO arena. All those things come together to say, 'PC is the right platform for this product.'

"Can I make a great a game on that platform? That's what I care the most about, and make sure that thing is fantastic and great.

"It's fortunate we are on the PC platform. I love the PC platform. A lot of the games I've done in the past are on PC. I'm excited to be able to bring that focus back to PC for MGS, because we haven't done a lot of stuff there.